ATHENS - Ray Drew wanted to be careful about what he said. The same way he was careful about doing damage to the Vanderbilt visiting locker room.

Drew, Georgia's junior defensive end, spoke to the media Wednesday for the first time since his targeting ejection at Vanderbilt. Replays indicated it at most should have been a late hit, and Georgia head coach Mark Richt said he didn't think Drew's hit fit the "spirit" of the targeting rule. But referee Matt Moore's call was upheld on replay, and Drew was tossed.

There was a moment of hesitation before Drew answered what he thought of the call.

"I feel you have to respect the call of the ref," he said, then laughed. "He felt that it was the right decision, so as of now, it is. Can't go back and change the way it came out. That's it, I don't really know how I want to answer that one."

It was a rare clamped-up moment for Drew, an ordained reverend who has become known for his colorful analogies and metaphors. In fact, when asked why he didn't have a metaphor for the targeting call ... Drew issued a metaphor:

"I have a metaphorical well. You draw all the water out of it at one time you're not gonna have any water left. You've gotta let it fill back up."

Well then.

Back to the ejection. It sent Drew to the locker room - ejected players can't stay on the sideline - and the visiting locker room didn't have a TV. So Drew changed out of his uniform and watched the rest of the game by peeking his head out of the locker room, which adjoins the field.

"I was peeking my head in and out, keeping tabs on what was going on," he said.

Drew has never been kicked out of a game.

"Never ever in the history of ever," he said.

And yes, it stings.

"Especially at the moment when it first happens," he said. "Your blood is running high. Your mind is running everywhere. I had a lot of thoughts about doing a lot of stuff while in the locker room, but ..."

He laughed.

Bryant Gantt, a former Georgia player who now serves as program coordinator, went into the locker room and helped calm Drew down. If not, Drew's not sure what kind of damage he might have done.

For more discussion on Georgia and the matchup with Florida, please join Seth Emerson's live chat, Thursday at noon on the blog.

About Jason Butt

Jason Butt joins The Telegraph after spending the past two years covering high school sports for The Washington Post. A 2009 University of Georgia graduate, he's also covered the Baltimore Ravens and Atlanta Falcons for CBSSports.com.